Southfield Lawyer Hid $2.6 Million From IRS, Sentenced To Prison Time

SOUTHFIELD, MI — A Southfield attorney was sentenced this week in federal court to 18 months in prison for hiding more than $2.6 million from tax preparers and the Internal Revenue Service, according to authorities.

Carl L. Collins was a personal injury lawyer and also owned a real estate company called First Third LLC as well as two medical service companies named MedCity Rehabilitation Services LLC and Alpha Living LLC, authorities said Monday.

Collins did not report substantial income from the businesses on his personal returns for 2012, 2015 and 2018 or on Alpha Living’s corporate return for 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Instead, he put the funds into bank accounts used by attorneys solely to hold money in trust for clients, and did not disclose the deposits to his return preparers or the Michigan State Bar Foundation, as required, authorities said.

In addition to prison time, Collins was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and serve a year of supervised release, according to authorities, who said a restitution hearing was set for Sept. 1.